Monday, April 25, 2011

Details added after the third paragraph (the first version was posted at 13:27)

Iranian specialists have found a second virus named "Stars" in the country’s Internet network, commander of civil defenseGholam Reza Jalali said in an interview with the Mehr news agency.

He said the specialists are studying the virus and the results will be announced in the coming days.

Last year the "Stuxnet" virus hit the Iranian Bushehr nuclear plant’s computers leading to the suspension of the plant’s work.

The Symantec company, operating in California, said in its report dated July 2010 that the "Stuxnet" virus has hit many countries in the world. According to the company’s report, 60 percent of the virus that infected the world is in Iran’s Internet network.

Iranian Atomic Energy Organization former head Ali Akbar Salehi said the "Stuxnet" virus has not affected main computers of the plant, but it infected some personal notebooks. Despite this, commander of civil defense Gholam Reza Jalali accused Germany’s Siemens company of a virus attack on Iranian nuclear plants.

According to BBC, SCADA software is produced by Germany’s Siemens. The software is used at large and complex industrial enterprises, including Iran’s nuclear enterprises.Experts believe that the "Stuxnet" virus is produced only for enterprises operating on SCADA software.

Commenting on the "Stars" virus, Jalali said that the new virus works in accordance with the system and it is unlikely to be disinfected at the initial stage. "The virus can be confused with some state agencies’ files, therefore, our specialists are analyzing the virus," Jalali said. Source